Last month, we looked at the intro rhythm parts and the intro guitar solo to the title track of the latest Nevermore album, The Obsidian Conspiracy. This month, I’ll go over the remaining single-note intro theme and primary verse riff. As you’ll see, the latter is a lower-octave version of the final intro lick.

The run winds up in bar 5 with some unbroken alternate picking as I ascend the D Phrygian-dominant mode across the top four strings, leading to a high D note at the 10th fret, which I shake then slide down from. Notice that I add a couple of chromatic passing tones on the top two strings during this final ascent.

In this Guitar World exclusive, we’ve gathered together Mustaine and his Megadeth coguitarist, Glen Drover, Lamb of God’s Mark Morton and Willie Adler, Arch Enemy’s Michael Amott and Fredrik Akesson and Trivium’s Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu to teach you the essential skills of modern shred.